SAKG NEWS
We are experiencing a cultural feast in kitchen this rotation with a Persian inspired menu. The spices and flavour combinations are quite different from what many of our students are used to, but Kate is pleased to report that they have taken up the opportunity with gusto and have learnt many new food names and combinations as a result.
We have been making spicy lamb meatballs and roasted spicy carrots using a blend of paprika, sumac, coriander, cumin and chilli. The same spice mix was used on both the lamb and the carrots, although they were cooked separately to make sure we respected our students who don't eat meat for cultural reasons. The carrots had been harvested from our garden by our garden teams and were chunky and deliciously sweet after being roasted. Our mains team also made the hummus, and every time has beaten the pants off the store bought stuff - well done kids!
Our salad team has been making tabouleh, which uses cracked wheat and parsley and mint, as well as chopped up cucumbers and tomatoes. The kids' knife skills are getting better and better and this dish was certainly a way to showcase excellent chopping.
As a base for our dishes the baking team made some pita breads, which required lots of kneading and rolling, and then careful cooking on a hot grill. The kids have learnt about using a pastry brush to carefully spread the olive oil and how to watch for the perfect time to flip them. They have been deliciously fluffy base on which to serve the meatballs/carrot, hummus and tabouleh. Most kids learnt how to mix and combine to maximise the good flavours together.
For dessert we have been making mini cupcakes using a sponge cake recipe that is adapted for muffins. This is a very simple recipe but makes for a beautiful little serve of cake for dessert, and our baking team have been learning about different techniques in mixing to achieve different textures.
In the garden, Jodie has focused on weeds. She gave a talk about weeds - "What is a weed? A plant in the wrong place!" She also talked with the students about lesser-known ways to get rid of weeds, such as free ranging chickens and solarisation. The chickens were set up around the garden with temporary fencing so that students could see them at work! Everyone then collected a weed and tried to identify it using weed cards provided.
Many thanks to all those special people who supported our garden stall and attended morning tea on special person’s day. And a big thank you to our garden leaders Paul and Eli, along with Cooper and Cruze who set up and manned the stall on Friday. Most of the items were sold and we hear that we ran out of treats at morning tea. For those that managed to sample a biscuit or muffin you have been able to experience the yummy things that are created in our kitchen by our students. Some of you may have also had the pleasure of spending some time in the kitchen with your special people and witnessed them at work or even assisted. We are always looking for volunteers in both the kitchen and garden so if you liked what you saw/experienced please get in touch with a member of the team (Jodie, Kate or Mrs O’Brien) or see the ladies in the office so we can organise an induction and get you set up. We would love more help!
And lastly we have a garden working bee coming up on Saturday 1st June. The Baha’i community group have kindly offered to assist but we invite any member of school community to join us in completing some much need jobs of weeding, clearing a garden bed, composting and mulching. Starting time is still to be confirmed, but around 10ish, and this will be posted on Compass. Please come and join us.
Mrs O’Brien, Kate & Jodie